Come, let us sing to the LORD; *
let us shout for joy to the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving *
and raise a loud shout to him with psalms.
For the LORD is a great God, *
and a great King above all gods.
In his hand are the caverns of the earth, *
and the heights of the hills are his also.
The sea is his, for he made it, *
and his hands have molded the dry land.
Come, let us bow down, and bend the knee, *
and kneel before the LORD our Maker.
For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand. *
Oh, that today you would hearken to his voice!
Harden not your hearts,
as your forebears did in the wilderness, *
at Meribah, and on that day at Massah,
when they tempted me.
They put me to the test, *
though they had seen my works.
Forty years long I detested that generation and said, *
“This people are wayward in their hearts;
they do not know my ways.”
So I swore in my wrath, *
“They shall not enter into my rest.”

INTRODUCTION
If the Invitatory is not said, then the following is used:

There is a voice of rebellion deep in the heart of the wicked; *
there is no fear of God before his eyes.
He flatters himself in his own eyes *
that his hateful sin will not be found out.
The words of his mouth are wicked and deceitful, *
he has left off acting wisely and doing good.
He thinks up wickedness upon his bed
and has set himself in no good way; *
he does not abhor that which is evil.
Your love, O LORD, reaches to the heavens, *
and your faithfulness to the clouds.
Your righteousness is like the strong mountains,
your justice like the great deep; *
you save both man and beast, O LORD.
How priceless is your love, O God! *
your people take refuge under the
shadow of your wings.
They feast upon the abundance of your house; *
you give them drink from the river of your delights.
For with you is the well of life, *
and in your light we see light.
Continue your loving-kindness to those who know you, *
and your favor to those who are true of heart.
Let not the foot of the proud come near me, *
nor the hand of the wicked push me aside.
See how they are fallen, those who work wickedness! *
they are cast down and shall not be able to rise.

Glory to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;
As it was in the beginning, is now and will be forever. Amen.

Psalm Prayer

Lord, you are the source of unfailing light. Give us true knowledge of your mercy so that we may renounce our pride and be filled with the riches of your house.

I will sing unto the Lord a new song: O Lord thou art great and glorious, wonderful in strength and invincible.
Let all creatures serve thee: for thou spakest and they were made;
Thou didst send fourth thy spirit and he created them, and there is none that can resist thy voice.
For all the mountains shall be moved from their foundations with the waters, and of the rocks shall melt as wax at thy presence: yet thou art merciful to them that fear thee.
For all sacrifice is too little for a sweet savor unto thee: but he that feareth the Lord is great at all times.
Woe to the nations that rise up against my kindred! The Lord Almighty will take vengeance of them in the day of judgment.
Glory be to the father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

Clap your hands, all you peoples; *
shout to God with a cry of joy.
For the LORD Most High is to be feared; *
he is the great King over all the earth.
He subdues the peoples under us, *
and the nations under our feet.
He chooses our inheritance for us, *
the pride of Jacob whom he loves.
God has gone up with a shout, *
the LORD with the sound of the ram’s-horn.
Sing praises to God, sing praises; *
sing praises to our King, sing praises.
For God is King of all the earth; *
sing praises with all your skill.
God reigns over the nations; *
God sits upon his holy throne.
The nobles of the peoples have gathered together *
with the people of the God of Abraham.
The rulers of the earth belong to God, *
and he is highly exalted.

Glory to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;
As it was in the beginning, is now and will be forever. Amen.

Psalm Prayer

God, King of all peoples and all ages, it is your victory we celebrate as we sing with all the skill at our command. Help us always to overcome evil by good, that we may rejoice in your triumph for ever.

Ant. 3. Exult in God’s presence with hymns of praise.

READING

Deuteronomy 7:6, 8–9

For you are a holy people to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you so that you would be his particular people out of all the peoples who are upon the earth. But it is because the Lord has loved you, and has kept his oath, which he swore to your fathers. And he has led you away with a strong hand, and he has redeemed you from the house of servitude, from the hand of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. And you shall know that the Lord your God himself is a strong and faithful God, preserving his covenant and his mercy for those who love him and those who keep his precepts for a thousand generations.

Ant. 4. Blessed are those who suffer persecution for the sake of justice; the kingdom of heaven is theirs.

Luke 1:68-79
The Messiah and his forerunner.
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people;
And hath raised up a mighty salvation for us, in the house of his servant David;
As he spake by the mouth of his holy Prophets, which have been since the world began;
That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us.
To perform the mercy promised to our forefathers, and to remember his holy covenant;
To perform the oath which he swore to our forefather Abraham, that he would give us;
That we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear;
In holiness and righteousness before him, in all the days of our life.
And thou, child shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways;
To give knowledge of salvation unto his people for the remission of their sins,
Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us;
To give light to them that sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and ever shall be world without end. Amen.

Ant. 4. Blessed are those who suffer persecution for the sake of justice; the kingdom of heaven is theirs.

INTERCESSIONS

Blessed be God, the giver of salvation, who decreed that mankind should become a new creation in himself, when all would be made new. With great confidence let us ask him:
Lord, renew us in your Spirit.

Lord, you promised a new heaven and a new earth; renew us daily through your Spirit,
– that we may enjoy your presence for ever in the heavenly Jerusalem.
Lord, renew us in your Spirit.

Help us to work with you to make this world alive with your Spirit,
– and to build on earth a city of justice, love and peace.
Lord, renew us in your Spirit.

Free us from all negligence and sloth,
– and give us joy in your gifts of grace.
Lord, renew us in your Spirit.

Deliver us from evil,
– and from slavery to the senses, which blinds us to goodness.
Lord, renew us in your Spirit.

(And now let us pray as the Lord told us:)
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done on earth
as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.

CONCLUDING PRAYER

Lord our God, help us to prepare for the coming of Christ your Son.
May he find us waiting, eager in joyful prayer.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Amen

DISMISSAL

May the Lord + bless us,
protect us from all evil
and bring us to everlasting life.
– Amen.